Sound-producing toy



Jan.- 10, 1939. cy'v. GrAlMo `sUND-PRODUCING` TOY Filed July 8, 1936 affitti!! A TTORNEY Patented Jan. l0, 1939 PATENT oFFicE SOUND-PRODUCING TOY Charles V. Giaimo, Irvington, N. J., assigner to The Lionel Corporation, New York, N. Y., a

corporation oI.' New York Application July s, 193s, sensi No. 89,491

7 Claims.

The present invention relates to sound producing toys and is more particularly directedA toward sound producing toys adapted to be operated by energy storing springs. y

5 The present invention contemplates a toy locomotive or otherwheeled toy having means generally in the form of a spring motor for propelling the toy and provided with a sound producing device adapted toproduce sustained sounds when l the propulsion unit is operated.

kWhen the sound producing device is employed on propulsion units of the wind-up spring type, the sound producingunit may be designed so as to function as the governor for the spring motor. i According to the present invention, thespring motor driven propulsionl unit employs driving wheels actuated through a speed'increasing gear train driven from the wind-up spring and addi` tional speed increasing gearing is provided for 9,0` operating an impeller of an air blower. Owing to the'high speed which may be given the impeller, the impeller has considerable air friction and may readily function to limit the speed at which the wind-up spring is permitted to unwind.

g5 In the preferred construction, the complete toy employs a propulsion unitl capable of complete assembly, and a sound producing unit capable of complete assembly, these two units being secured together in operative relation.

A blower operated whistle is adapted for producing sustained sounds so long as the blower is operated, and these sounds more nearly simulate the whistle of a locomotive than any sound )which can be produced by such mechanisms as a bellows, siren friction operated device, or mechani` cal rattle.

The present invention also contemplates the interruption oi' the sound by mechanism operated by the propulsion motor and designed to' intermittently open and close the air passage so that sustained sounds may be interrupted in the same way that one interrupts the sounding of a locomotive whistle.

Other and further objects of the invention will 5 appear as the description proceeds.

The accompanying drawing shows, for purposes oi illustrating the present invention. one of the many embodiments in which the invention may take form it being understood that the drawing is illustrative of the invention rather than limiting the same.

In the drawing,

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a toy locomotive embodying a. propulsion unit and sound 1 producing unit,

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the structure shown in Figure l,

Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view on the line 3-3 of Figure 2, and

Figure 4 is a horizontal view on the line 4-4 l of Figure. l 1

The toy locomotive is supported on the track by pairs of wheels indicated at lll and II, the wheels II being the driving wheels which actuate the locomotive. l0

The supporting wheels are mounted on axles I2 and 'I3 supported in side plates I4 and I4a, held together by spacers I5. The axle I3 carries a driving pinion I6 in mesh with a gear II carried by` a. shaft I8. This shaft I8 carries a l5 pinion I9 in mesh with a gear 20, carried on a shaft 2I,Yand the shaft 2| carries a pinion 22.

in mesh witha large `gear 23 carried on a shaft operates the gear train above described, so as to :l0`

propel the toy along the track or roadway.

The gear train may be locked against unwinding by a brake lever 29 pivoted at 30 and having a tooth 3i engaging with the gear I3.

The inner face oi one of the driving wheels II is provided with a large diameter gear indicated at` 32, and this gear meshes with a pinion 33 mounted on a laterally projecting stud 34 carried by the frame plate I4. This pinion is secured to a larger gear 35 which projects beyond the left 40 edge 36 of the side plate I4.

The sound producing unit includes a casting 4I) and a cover plate 4I secured to it by screws 42 to form a casing or housing. The casting 40 has a partition forming member 43 which forms an 45 involute shaped housing 44 for the impeller, indicated at 45, and a resonating chamber to the. left, asindicated at 46. The impeller 45 is mounted on a shaft 41 which carries a pinion 48 and this pinion is in mesh with the gear 3l 50 the whistle may be interrupted, the device is shown as having a lever 52 pivoted at 53 to the casting 40. The left end 54 of this lever is opposite the orice 5I, while the right hand end 55 of the lever is adjacent the face of the gear 23. It carries a cam face 56 adapted to be engaged by laterally extending pins 51 carried by the gear. The lever 50 is normally in the position shown in full lines in Figure 1, but may be Y moved to the position shown in dot and dash lines by the pin 51, and may be held there for desired length of time, dependihgon the camming action of the pins or other'devices'carried bythe main driving gear 23 1 y t j'I'he structure shown herein is adapted for 'easy manufacture and assembly. The propulsion 'n so units may be assembled complete and the whistle lunits assembled complete and then t w0= -units may I be :readily secured together by vmeans of screws and 6I passing through openings in the left end ofthe plate I4 and entering 'into lugsr 63 carried by the blower casting'4ll. This'automatically aligns theA parts, places the pinion 41 in mesh with the gear 35 and, locates the` lever` lwith the camv devices.

42 in operative relation carried by the main gear.

It will be noted that the complete propulsion and sound producingunit shown and' described herein utilizesfthe blower 'as -a'sp'eed limitingair governor; thereby making it. unnecessary to provide the spring motor/with the usual.;governorM of the centrifugal typ'efl Byl eliminating the former type of speed governorlandthersounding bell sometimes employed on spring propelled toy locomotives, one is able .to providea whistling toy locomotive at a cost approximately the same as theA cost of the former toy locomotive of the samev size bell. I

Propulsion and sound units such as hereinde-y scribed may be mounted in any convenientform provided4 merely Awith a sounding of enclosure, such for example as the locomotive shell indicated,at. ,64. A .Y

It isobvious, that the invention may be em'- bodied in many forms and constructions within the scope of the claims and I wish it to be under stood that the particular form shownis but onv of the many forms.

myself in any `way with respect thereto.

Iclaim: j 1. A spring motor driven wheeledvvehicl ing a continuously driven blowerk actingras. a speed limiting governor, a whistle 'actuated bytg y Various modiilcationsv and' changes being possible, I do not otherwiseli `it'- air propelled by the blower, and motor driven means for intermittently interrupting the air stream to stop the sounding of the whistle.

2. A spring motor driven vehicle having a speed increasing gearing continuously connected to an air impeller .for operating the same at high speed, driving wheels operated by said gear train, a housing about the impeller provided with an air inlet and an air outlet opening shaped to produce sound vibrations in the escaping air stream, and a resonating chamber controlling the pitch of the sound.

3. A'toy vehicle having a propulsion unit connected with driving wheels for actuating the toy vehicle, an air blower including a casing and rotary air impeller, a speed increasing gear train between the driving wheels and the impeller, and

va propulsion unit operated silencing device for Y intermittently silencing the whistle.

4.A toy vehicle having a propulsion unit connected withldriving wheels for actuating the toy vehicle, an air blower including a casing and rotary impeller, a speed increasing gear train between the driving wheels and the impeller, a slow moving cam, and a cam'operated lever for opening and closing the orice through which the air passes. y

' 5. In a toy vehicle, a propulsion unit comprisl,ing an energy storing spring, driving wheels and a speed increasingl gear train driven from the spring Afor actuatingthe driving wheels, a second p speed increasing gear train driven from the first,

` an impeller rotated by the second gear train, an

j'impeiler housing having an air inlet, and a device intermittently operated from the propulsion unit :for interferingA with theairfi'ow produced by the fimpelier for .interrupting the sound of the whistle.

6. In a toy vehicle, a propulsion unit comprising an' energy storingv spring, driving wheels and a speed increasinggear train driven from the y springffor actuating the'driving wheels, a second for inter `rsoin'fdoif'the whistle.

` vehicl having afpropulsion unit includin an er storingspring, driving wheels,

gfger 'train for operating the pfingja pinion driven thereby eanfand a s ound producing unit d .v nz'meshwiththe last mentioned gear, esonatingchamber, a sound producing orifice,

'w1 .moving cam operated by the spring and 1 cam; operated vlever for opening and' closing the sound producing orifice;

. oHAaLEs Vl dlArMo.

casing, an air impeller having a drivn 

